Keanna MacInnes: A Summer of Triumphs

0:00I really like a lot of volume of fly, like hard, high intensity fly. A lot of the time it's sort of me arguing with Brad if I can up the level of fly of it, which usually comes like just based on my sort of physiology and stuff. I usually have to be a bit more patient, so a lot of the a lot of the rest of the guys will do a lot of hard work earlier on in the season, but I don't really get to do that till we get closer to tapers. Hello everyone and welcome back to another episode of the propulsion swimming podcast. I hope you all keep in well. As we promised off the back of what was a very very busy summer of racing, then commonwealth games, european championships, pan backs. We said we'd get some good swimmers on this podcast chatting through there, some of competitions because obviously everyone watching and listening to us was in a little bit of a bubble away from the competition itself. We didn't get interviews as swimmers when they were racing because they're racing. And we've got our fantastic guest on this week in Kiena McKinnis. Now, Kiena's been

1:04the leading light in the 200 metres butterfly for a long time here at Britain. Even with challenges of lights of Laura Stevens, Emily Richards, she's helped the British title and been the one in Britain for quite a few times. I've been like four years. Oh yes. And this summer she added the 100 metres butterfly to her arsenal. In some style, there's always been there but a British record at european championships and formed a big part of the gold medal, four by one, medley relay team for the women at european championships as well. A huge summer for Kiena. Really looking forward to everyone diving into this episode with us, Dan. Yeah, we dive deep, quite deeply into the training aspects of what she does. It is a swim nerd special. It will be a little bit. Yeah, you're right. And it was very interesting to hear that she's been targeting the 100 more than a 200 and focusing on relays. And while she explains it more in the episode. And we also talk about the transition from commies to your opinions on what you did in that sort of 7, 10 day gap. So we, yeah, we deep dive into a lot

2:08of factors, talk about the psychological aspects of things as well. So yes, we did. We nerded out, honestly. We really did. Oh, I love this episode. It was really, really fun. It's right. That the training models that are going on with British swimming and how they're influencing these swims that are specifically coming out of sterling because the sterling squad has done so well. We've spoken to Katie recently on the podcast and we dive a little deeper into the training with Kiena and what the setup is there. They've been on that Yano brick model. A little bit longer than the rest of Britain. And it shows a little bit. But I don't think that's the only reason that the swims are the swims from a lot of sterling swimmers. Yeah, the girls flew this summer. All of them, not just that sterling out of Manchester, out of Loughborough and one or two others, not at performance centres as well. It's a fantastic episode with Kiena. I'm going to step aside and say, look, sit back, enjoy. And let's hear what Britain's newest European champion

3:09has to say. Kiena, how are you doing? You've just come back off. I can say right now Dan is very jealous of the trip you've just got back off. A superb break, but it looks a bit off the back of some very busy races or racing. It was really fun. I think we did, like sort of south east Asia last year, off the back of Singapore. And I think coming off that, we kind of wanted to do a bit more of like exploring sort of holidays. So we did sort of a few countries in higher decar and we went all over the place. It was great. But did you have the weather that UK had? Oh my god, it was so hot. It was hot. Yeah, we were like, yeah, we were dying. It was probably not so pleasant. We did one of the highest peaks or we did the highest mountain in Montenegro. And it was just, it was so hot. Like there's just a bit more wind when we were up the mountain. But like it was so hot the whole time. On the last day when we were in Gibraltar, I was like, this is like, I feel like I'm going to pass

4:11out. Or I was like, over the 40s, like, oh wow. That's not fun, especially someone who comes to Scotland. Is that something you found yourself doing a little bit more often to unwind after major meets? Kind of stick around in I know it's not quite Paris where you were. But bounce on straight from that. I'd say major pressure point, like of A season and just completely detach from. I don't want to say the world, but a detach from regular life that you've just been stuck in for what nine months of heart training. Is that how you're finding yourself unwinding after this summer? Or like summers in the future as well? Yeah, I quite like if we've got somewhere really cool that we've travelled, like we obviously get that with swimming all the time to just stay out there almost for free. I guess you've then just got your flight home. So it's just handy. This year I've done Paris enough. So we kind of didn't do Paris. And my boyfriend's brother was doing an Ironman in Copenhagen. So I

5:18got to come home for a little bit and sort of unwind with my parents first before I went away. And then cause we were only away from for 10 days this year as opposed to like three, four weeks last year. It's quite nice now that I've got to come back and settle before we go into training on Monday. So we've done a bit of like housework and things and trying to get everything reset so that you know can just focus on training when I get back. What is the plan for a weekend? Got a couple of days to a Monday. So what's the plan? We were looking after my parents still had puppies last year and one of the families that took one of the puppies is down all 10 towers. So we're looking after one of those this weekend. So yeah, it's nice. More walking then. So it's it was a pretty busy summer for all GB athletes in the pool. You had two major competitions which I would say neither one really took precedent in terms of which one you had to target, especially being a

6:20Scottish women in Glasgow. When you look back on the last few months, is there like is there one thing that comes to mind from the summer? Is there one race, one moment or is it still a bit of a blur? Or was there so much going on that you just you can't quite comprehend like an individual moment? I think for me and I said this the same at the Olympics. So it is kind of a bit funny like the 100 fly was probably quite a highlight. I think having like the three Scottish girls there and we all get on so well. I'm obviously I've raised Kiro since we were juniors and I train with Lucy every day. So it was like really special in the coloreum. I think we all knew that like we all had a medal chance. So it would be really cool if we'd all meddled like obviously that wasn't super likely but that would be really cool. And yeah I think coming out the pool and having the girls also be so excited for me and I hadn't seen that as I'd seen that maybe as an outside medal chance

7:20going into the meet but like a couple months out I hadn't even considered that one as a medal opportunity for Colme's. So like it kind of took the pressure off because again like Colme's for me is always being quite a big thing. I don't know if it's the way that like society sort of builds up like it almost feels like another Olympics almost. So like for me Colme's in my head feels much bigger than in Europeans just because it is the multi sport sort of situation and things I think. And then with it being a home games as well. So I think the previous Colme's I hadn't performed as I'd probably quite wanted to. So yeah I think that 100 fly just getting first medal and like kind of taking that box was just quite special and then to do it with the girls and there's some really cool voters as well. I was awesome. I think me and Dan sat here we did a live streaming the evening and just went that 100 fly is actually up there as I think we had it as like British race of the summer. Like just because all the Scottish girls they

8:22all pee-beat like in that major final and I know obviously you lowered the Scottish record in that moment but Kierri got like bang on it as well Lucy got I think it was below 58 for the first time. Everything seemed to click in that moment with the three of you together and obviously not a full podium but it was in our opinion like as good as like you could have dreamt for heading into that race. Yeah I think so as well because I think even just generically across all the British rumors there wasn't necessarily a huge amount of pee-beats at commies and for us all to do it all three of us was like pretty cool and it maybe made the sort of like maybe the girls missing that own medals maybe it helps a little bit if you know you've done the fastest time you've ever done. So yeah I was really really pleased for both of them. How much does it help having that competition in Britain to keep you kind of pushing on every year? Yeah I think probably a huge amount especially in the 100 fly like obviously I've sort of always considered that secondary event

9:24for myself but coming into this year when I wrote my sort of targets that start of the year I sort of wanted to put more focus on the 100 knowing that there was so much really potential there especially with hanghard coming through and then Lauren and Katie have both done really good times as well this year now. So I think going into LA like there is a chance for meddling that really and so I obviously want to be on that team and I think having the other girls push me means that I need to work hard at it to make that team and then I think again at the start of the year the British record sort of was in in my mind for that one but I thought that that for the 100 was maybe a bit of a nice chance but I wanted to set my my target pretty high because of some maybe not not having some great previous years. What were your targets of interest? 259 was my target on the British record. I can't believe it.

10:25Yes so I think after after Callmys I was actually a little bit disappointed with my time on the to under fly but yeah then to put that right at Europeans it was pretty exciting and then yeah it was just the British record for for the 100 pretty much I think but yeah I think then again going into VLA's like I've done lots of takeover work and things for that because we've been given by British ring and sort of these these talks we have with them sort of target times they predict times that they think are going to medal for L.A. and things and the girls are getting pretty close to sort of medal prediction times and obviously we all need to perform all together all at once for that to for that to work but I think even even the European title there was pretty almost unexpected I think we all sort of pulled out of the bag which is really nice. Yeah really helped us kind of I mean you angered to you it's a training connection as well like you're both in stunting and the other and like the times that she's dropping in the relays is just I mean we compared it

11:30to Adam right it's that level of as far ahead of the rest of the world that she's doing it just must build so much confidence in not just her but an Sterling but actually the female side of British room like Katie's shelter from the hills last episode that we spoke to her like the girls are there they've been there for ages and this summer felt like the moment where they stepped out of the shadows and really showed up. Yeah it's definitely something we spoke about at Europeans I think like it's not necessarily the girls under perform ever it's just that even when we're doing best times and things we haven't actually made the podiums whereas it almost seemed like a little bit of a flip this Europeans which is nice because yeah we maybe are a bit a bit overshadowed by the boys some of the time and I think Steve gives a really good fact actually in our deep brief saying that 30% of the female British records had been taken down this year wow that is big that is a good start I was unaware of that like I'm a suit I know the British

12:35records that have gone as all of us have but 30% that's that's a big old number oh wow that's very interesting have you have you changed any way of like approaching training recently so you said you've targeted a hundred fly more so this year than your favorite 200 200 have you changed anything in like in difference in preparation or anything like that not hugely training wise I think I've done a lot more really stuff specifically for the hundred I've had a big change to my sort of head position when I breathe on the hundred as well which seems to sort of be appearing a little bit in the 200 as well but it's more of a focus in the hundred I've been working a lot on my breathing pattern as well on the hundred and like playing around with breathing every three as opposed to every two just because my head position can be quite disruptive so yeah I think that's definitely helped is that then an easy fix holding your breath for an extra stroke

13:35well so I used to I used to breathe every three on the 200 until I came to sterling I didn't find typologically I'm fine okay that's more of like a rhythm thing and sort of we've been playing around with just how that works and I think I've found a bit more confidence as well just like race plan and race feel wise especially like I found a real benefit from the back-to-back racing and it's definitely the most racing I've ever done but it doesn't mean you can play around a little bit or like stakes right after you've done them which then makes it easier to like remember how everything's felt so I think again like I mean what I know we spoke about before we started recording about ISL but I found that back-to-back racing really beneficial for me and I think that's kind of shown again in the summer coming off the back of Calleys and dropping more time still even though you know we did do a full taper for Calleys and it was kind of just seeing how much we could bounce back off that so it's no accident that kind of in our opinion your best swim

14:39came on the final day of a very very busy summer like in the two-fly like waiting around for that moment and you said obviously you didn't hit it at Calleys did you have to it's not that you have to be patient for it sounds like you were actually growing in confidence and getting to that moment was fairly comfortable knowing that I've played about with things the swims are coming they're coming it's building to this moment on the final day of Europeans yeah I think I was a bit nervous going into Europeans just in general knowing that obviously we'd done a full taper for Calleys and the coaches that sort of said like the second bounce higher like if you stay if you stay in the right mindset and stuff it will just come naturally but I think then after I did I think it was my 56 or whatever it was in that relay that was a crazy swim mind you off the two-fly like yeah I was like well with that that gave me then the confidence to sort of go into the rest the week because yeah I know that I needed to work on the front end of my toned fly this year

15:43that was like a big a big target for me and I think in the final I maybe was quite quite quick out I'm sorry we said it you certainly took it out a lot harder than you usually do but I don't think you paid the price at the back end I think it we we've sat here you may not have listened but we've sat here for like the past three years and just going I don't think there's been a race where Kenner and the two-fly has misplaced it you've always come back really strong in the last 50 meters and always it felt like you're closing on the ball rather than the other way around and then at Europeans it felt like you tried to take it on a notch more for the first hundred yeah well so actually I think so at Calleys I knew basically if I wanted to win that I was going to have to take out really strong because those girls girls are fast and they're fast to a hundred and to be in the race I had to be out there at 100 but I think at Calleys I was just maybe a little bit overly tensed to a hundred so it felt hard but at Europeans I felt yeah maybe a bit

16:45more a bit more confident in myself and I was like I just need to relax to a hundred and I know naturally I have that speed and obviously I'd been doing PBs in the hundred so it makes that front end a little bit easier so actually to a hundred I felt really good in at Europeans so when I was told my splits afterwards I was pretty surprised so you said you fall fully tapered for Calleys and in Europeans is over a week after what did you do in between Calleys and Europeans I assume it's maintenance stuff in a pool yeah pretty much so we we got back and pulled pretty quickly after Calleys and then yeah we were training the film next week we got the weekend off so I think Calleys ended on the Wednesday and we got the normal weekend off that we would have just regularly anyway we did a bit more volume towards the start of the week and then yeah just kind of like went back into sort of taper sort of sessions towards the end of the week before we floored Paris yeah sort of just maintenance stuff I think doing the volume of racing we were doing was

17:48kind of enough to keep us keep us fit and things and then how do you stay mentally sharp I suppose in race mode yeah I think that was that was something I was a bit worried about because anytime I've done that sort of double thing in the past it's been quite mentally tough to be honest I remember in 2022 after Calleys I don't know what I this is and I was trying to I was speaking someone about it recently but four of the it was there was four Scottish girls that went to Europeans and we all went down to Loughborough to train after Calleys because I don't think there was enough time to go back up to Scotland or whatever okay it's not any bombing I don't yeah I don't know there was a sport there was just four of us I was no coaches and none of the Loughborough swimmers were there I don't think so I don't know why I was so I was really like that I found that really really tough that year so I was just I think from here it was just trying to stay positive because I think when the group gets down more people can get down but I think it helped that there was like a sort of

18:49full roster of sterling swimmers so it kind of was just normal training for us like we had Brad and Ben both still there and then there was like quite a big group of us that were doing both Calleys and Europeans so it did just feel like we're back to normal training the sterling success then over we've asked this question to Katie like over recent years what's it what's it down to because I know there's been the shift in philosophy in British swimming of going to the Janol Brick model or not completely but on those lines like an adaption of it but it's something that sterling have had in place a little longer than the rest of Britain is that part of the reason that you guys are showing so strongly at this point in the cycle or is it like I know Brad is an amazing coach from that side I've not actually crossed paths with Ben yet would love to have a chat with him as well um what's the secret because the the swims coming out of sterling are phenomenal yeah I do think the Jan model is very because it's so individualized it

19:54takes a lot of playing around with and I think one because our coaches have been working with it so long they kind of know where to tweak what things almost but then also because we've all been doing it for so long they kind of know now what we need and what works well for us so I think from a British swimming perspective that will maybe come in the years like years coming um but then yeah just from sterling I would say like I just think the coaching setup for me just works really well like we've got the two coaches the environment's just really nice and relaxed and everyone kind of just gets the work done and I think at this specific point we've got quite a young group of swimmers and things so everyone wants to be there like previously it's been that it's got to point where like almost the whole squad's ready to retire and then it's kind of like the vibe is that you can feel like everyone is ready to go but I think now everyone's committed

20:57fully to the LA cycle at least and everyone wants to be there so I think that environment and everyone holds each other accountable and things just really helps and then yeah I think Brad and Ben work really well together I think Brad and Steve worked really well together like they've got such a good mix of sort of professionalism and like fun and playfulness so like it makes it makes the sessions more enjoyable and I think everyone just wants to be there I guess see now we've spoken to Casey on the last episode and she said that you you trained the house down basically with some of your brutal sets so how's it staying well let's first of all what are some of those sets you need to know a bit more about them first of all oh god I don't know I just I look I really like a lot of volume of fly like hard like high intensity fly um so a lot of the time it's sort of me arguing with Brad if I can up the level of fly a bit um which usually comes like just based on my sort of physiology and stuff

22:06I usually have to be a bit more patient so a lot of the a lot of the rest of the guys will do a lot hard work earlier on in the season but I don't really get to do that till we get closer to tapers so yeah I think a lot of the time Brad's always joking that he thinks I'm like that I'm going to ask for something more I'm going to ask for something more um yeah I don't know I think I just I prefer I prefer to train the fly than freestyle so I just like to do a high volume of fly so some people will probably see that as being like maybe a bit a bit harder but I find it really find it easier I'm pretty sure Laura Steven said pretty much the same sort of thing she actually doesn't really I feel I remember correctly she doesn't really enjoy tapers she actually kind of feels like she has to work through it I guess it's kind of similar to what you were saying so how does how does Ben and Brad keep it relatively fun if you're actually asking them to make it harder yeah I don't know what I just I just really enjoy key sets like I've never been someone to sort of shy away from that so yeah I think for me just getting to do a key set is something I

23:08enjoy like often if they take me off a key set will be more down I find it harder to get through the sort of like longer aerobic freestyle sets for example um so yeah I sometimes it can be in a series during taper like okay but I mean I've done it so many times now that I can just trust is it a psychological thing because you feel like you're gaining more out of the key sets than a regular aerobic plot if you like yeah it might be that I think also like I don't know if I just like yeah like psychologically respond really well like I get like quite a good like a adrenaline high or like I just feel really good after I've done a key set like I'll come home when I'll be in a really good mood and like I just feel good at both myself so taking the endorphine yeah yeah I get that much more from like a hard set than I would from any other sessions so wow that's a nice one so it'll be like you can I'm not right

24:08quite sure now to be fair I get I get the understanding of just aerobic is like okay like yeah yeah yeah um what what I know we've spoken about training and secrets at Sterling but the improvements that you've made they they have constantly been consistent for like four years now like it's kind of gone under the radar how long you've had the British title in the two fly what's what do you put it down to constantly keeping steps on and hitting PBs like I don't want to say so far into your senior career but there's plenty of swimmers who don't take PBs in the senior career for granted and they keep coming for you what's that down to you I'm not really sure I think just I guess constantly sort of trying to find things to change and yeah like race plan I'm always sort of adapting um to sort of find where my weaknesses are and things um and I mean there's

25:08only so much you can do with your strengths so like obviously as you said like I know my back end on the 200 is is strong but there's no point in having a really fast last 50 if you're already three four seconds behind the rest of the field um so yeah I guess just finding weaknesses um constantly and trying to work on those um yeah I don't know if I can I can really say that there's there's anything else other than that um for me I feel like you might say that I've had a quite consistent but I I've felt like each each year the past few years that I've not quite got out of myself what I'd wanted to in summer so like this summer wasn't necessarily a huge surprise for me like that is like the times I did were kind of what I had hoped for based on just like previous seasons like just illness and injury and I think this year I was just quite lucky that my so I had to shoulder injury that was kind of ongoing and that it's just start to ease off this year so I've been able to do a lot more in training and be less cautious about

26:13that I guess and that builds confidence with that I assume yeah definitely I mean I think it had been a bit frustrating for me because that shoulder injury I did around um worlds in 2023 and so it ended up being lingering and they didn't really know what was going on with it and it was like basically two and a half years of them just trying to to guess what was wrong and just playing around and with sort of right now I'll touch with it's sort of settled but even now or I guess we're not really super sure why so I'm just kind of continuing to do everything I've have been doing since it's got better and hopefully that it continues like that maybe it was all the intense fly sessions that you can find out maybe I was kind of blame on they are a bit of freestyle yeah maybe it's that yeah um what's the I was going to ask you question oh what's the like is there something that you learned out of your swims less set your European swims as because they were your better swims this summer does anything you learned from those swims to take forward into future

27:15races yeah I'm a lot more confident in the hundreds um now uh like I just I've got a better idea of how I should feel to 50 and also again in that in terms of relays I've not necessarily been a great relays somewhere in the past I think this year this or this season I've dropped two seconds on my relays split from what it previously was so it's a big draw that was that was a big one for me because yeah previously my PB was faster than my relays split which is a little bit down to the fact that I'm not managed to get tapered relays in for a few years um I think it was under 23s that my best was from um in a relay but yeah I think just the feel like I've got a better idea of how I meant to feel um and staying relaxed and warm and things um and I'm sure when I go back like there'll be lots of little little bits I can tweak and work on um going to next year but I've not sat down

28:16and spoken to my coach yet so yeah no we're catching you just before training starts again so the conversation in the future of maybe a little are too soon but did this summer change any expectations for you moving forward into the Olympics cycle towards LA obviously we're we're slapping in the middle of the four-year cycle the dreaded four-year cycle that word but did it change yeah did it change expectations becoming European champion equim or breaking British records and relay golds and does they change any expectations for you um I don't think so I think potentially really wise I'm a bit more confident in myself because I'd always felt like almost a bit of a weak link in in the relay and I know it's maybe not not just me but like say like with hang harrid being such a great relays somewhere in like um it can be just like I feel a lot a bit I feel a lot more pressure and relays um than I do individually so I guess maybe expectations

29:18there maybe a bit higher but I think yeah as I said like I had to confidence go into this summer that those were the short times that I could do um so I think just just that and I think yeah just going into next year just see how I can place on sort of world level and it's very different racing a race from behind rather than out in front when you've got like your likes of summer macintosh and things in there so I think that there'll be lots to take from from world's next year as well yeah because right right now this summer I have been out quick to a hundred and been with everyone so it's just keeping keeping your cool when you're on an international field which is just completely different to sort of racing yeah you mentioned summer quickly there is it's tough knowing that like obviously the world record she's hit is just absurd when when you're in the pool with her is it blinkers and just try to ignore what's going on over there yeah probably if I find up in a

30:25position that I'm next to her or maybe just be trying to race the sort of other girls that are they're in the race as well um but like I'm sure she's she'll be great like sit sit on and see how see how close I can get to her um knowing that she can do some really really quick times so if we have this if we have this conversation again in like a year's time for example what would you love to be able to say that you've achieved is it time is it a medal what what what is it um there'll be times probably as well but yeah I think a world's medal would be pretty cool I think my time for me Europeans would have meddled at last last worlds um so I think fingers crossed if I can stay sort of injure an illness free which is like a big big one for me going into summer championships then hopefully I can have a good summer. I was Christ definitely that it feels like it's been brewing like and the on a world level for you I know obviously it clicked this year at these I call them continental meets but like that world level it really does feel like

31:27I had no worlds and stuff happened at worlds last time it did it at that moment it felt like it was on the precipice and then this summer's happened so I'm buzzing to see what happens in Budapest and um I want to know the travel plans off the back of Budapest as well when they come around. Oh yeah I think I'll be the next ones will be off the back of LA I think that we will have a lot of experience already planning. I probably want to travel maybe so these days right if I decide I'm finished swimming as well. Okay nice nice well look Kiana thank you so much for giving up some time straight off the back of a very nice break good luck getting back into training and um yeah congratulations on a fantastic summer. Thank you very much. Yeah congratulations fingers crossed that you will stay healthy and injury free because if we've got that summer that we've just had hopefully worlds next summer will be something quite special so best of luck. Thank you. You've been listening to the Propulsion Swimming Podcast with Scott and Dan.

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